


Dream Land

by bluerosekatie



Series: Kirby and Friends [2]
Category: Hoshi no Kaabii | Kirby: Right Back at Ya!, Kirby (Video Games)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Anime and Game Canon, Anime/Video Game Fusion, Canon-Typical Violence, Chaptered, Characters are tagged but might not be in the first chapter, Cute, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, Inhale Ability!, Mixed Media, No Copy Abilities, Sparkling Stars, dream land, headcanons, somewhat canon compliant, tagging is hard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:33:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25121710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluerosekatie/pseuds/bluerosekatie
Summary: A retelling of the first Kirby game, Kirby's Dream Land, mixed with the anime canon - which means it's not canon compliant for either :P *Highly* headcanoned out so be prepared for that.  It's a little violent but I don't think it deserves the graphic depictions of violence warning - tell me if you disagree and I'll add it.
Relationships: Fumu | Tiff & Kirby, Lololo & Lalala
Series: Kirby and Friends [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2040034
Comments: 6
Kudos: 11





	1. Crash-Landing

A red light blinked in the normally still cockpit of the tiny, five-pointed starship. Its occupant, a small, rounded creature with a pale pink body and darker pink feet, awoke and stared blankly at the light. 

_ What does that mean? _

The starship filled with a low hum, which quickly became the only thing its occupant could hear. Its top sealed and blocked the child’s view of the stars, and before anyone knew the ship had paused there, it was gone. Starship and occupant sped to a planet whose atmosphere seemed to glow like a star.

Lights continued to flash in the cabin, and the tiny boy inside couldn’t help being overwhelmed. He pressed himself against the seat, scared. A sharp impact broke open the seal and sent him flying out of the recycled air of the ship and into the fresh air of the planet’s surface. He landed on a dry patch of grass near the edge of a canyon filled with sharp rocks.

Gingerly, he lifted his stubby limbs and stood up. He blinked in the bright sunlight. The starship beside him was ruined, with patches of plating falling off and the cabin’s top cracked. It hadn’t hit much except for the ground, but the crash-landing had been enough to total it.

He looked around.  _ Have I ever been on a planet before? This one looks pretty, it has … grass, and trees, and mountains… _ But the grass crunched beneath his feet and the air was hot and dry. His stomach rumbled.

_ Hey, there’s something coming! It’s running _ . He could now see that it was a girl holding a basket and running to the woods. Her ponytail whipped back and forth as she ran, kicking aside pebbles.

_ Does she see the canyon? _ Evidently not. She drew closer, and the boy noticed many patches dotting her pink-and-green dress. The boy tried to cry out a warning, but only managed to squeak as she plunged into the canyon. He ran off the edge himself, and instinctively took a deep breath.

They fell for a long moment. Then the boy tumbled beneath the girl, took an even deeper breath, puffed up, and rose, with the girl clinging to the top of him.

“Who are you?” she gasped, once they’d reached the edge of the canyon again.

He smiled at her and looked up at her green eyes, but didn’t answer.

“Kabu said a Star Warrior was coming, but you couldn’t be one,” the girl said. She tucked a strand of blonde hair back into the chunky beads that held her ponytail. “Star Warriors are tall and strong, not pink and puffy.”

The boy began to remember something. Fragments of a memory fought to resurface, but all he could catch was a deep voice saying, “You’ll make a great Star Warrior someday, Kirby.”

He nudged the girl and tried to say, “I am a Star Warrior. Or, I will be,” but he only managed a string of babbling vowels.

“What? Oh, I’m Tiff from Cappy Town,” she said. “No, you couldn’t be the Star Warrior Kirby.” She looked him over again. “This was just some fluke.”

“I am Kirby!” he tried to say.  _ Talking’s hard. _ “Kaabii!!” he nearly shouted.

“What?!?” Tiff looked at him, so shocked she dropped her basket.

“Kirby, Kirby,” he said.

“Okay,” Tiff said. “If you really are a Star Warrior, I should take you back to Cappy Town.”

“Poyo!” Kirby shouted.  _ Yay! _

He dashed over to his starship, rummaged in the cockpit, and finally returned to Tiff with a small, medallion-like yellow star in his hand. 

“Is that a Sparkling Star?” she said. He handed it to her. “Nah, it’s just a toy or something.” She gave it back to him.

“Poyo, star poyo?” he asked.  _ What’s a Sparkling Star? _

“We’ve been missing the Sparkling Stars for a while now. All the plants are withering, and there’s not much food left here,” Tiff said. “If the Sparkling Stars were still here, we’d be able to gather more food, but nothing’s been tasting good ever since the Sparkling Stars were stolen.”

“Poy…” Kirby said. His stomach growled.

“Yeah, let’s get back to town,” Tiff said.

They walked across the brittle grass. As they went, Kirby tried to give the star to Tiff.

“I don’t need that, you keep it,” Tiff said.

“Poyo-eee?”

“No, yours.”

“Poyo?” He tried to open her hand and put the star inside.

“Oh, all right,” Tiff said, and took the star. “Look, there’s a Nruff. It’s not dangerous unless you get in its way.”

Kirby watched the snorting, snuffling creature pass, then coughed in the resulting dust cloud. The dust he’d inhaled shot out of his mouth in a hard, star-shaped puff.

“Whoa!” Tiff said. “Can you do that again?”

Kirby nodded and sucked in a deep breath. This time the entire dust cloud was pulled into his mouth, and when he spat it out, it flew even further.

“Huh. I’ve never seen anything do that before.”

Not far away stood a grouping of houses circling a patch of freshly exposed dirt.

“Poyo?” Kirby asked, gesturing to it.

“Yeah, that’s Cappy Town. And where the castle used to be.”

“Poyo?”

“King Dedede moved the castle way up the mountain when he took the Sparkling Stars. No one really knows how he did it, though.”

Tiff brought Kirby to a large house close to the dirt patch where the castle used to be. She knocked on the door.

A boy in tattered red overalls with long green and blue hair opened the door. “Back already? Did you even find anything?”

“No, Tuff, I didn’t find any food.”

“So what’s in your hand? And why are you back so soon?” Tuff asked.

“I found… well, he says he’s Kirby the Star Warrior, but I’m not so sure yet.”

Kirby squished through the gap between Tiff and the door and wandered into the house.

“Cool! A little pink Waddle Dee!” Tuff said.

“He’s not a Waddle Dee,” Tiff scolded. “See, he’s got a mouth, and he’s got blue eyes. I think all Waddle Dees have brown eyes. Anyways, most Waddle Dees are bigger than that.”

“He is kind of puny,” Tuff said. “What do you have in your hand?”

“It’s a little star thing. He gave it to me.”

“Huh.”

Tiff and Tuff followed Kirby into the other room, where he played happily with their old toys.

“Aww, look.” Tiff said. “He found our toys.”

“You really think he’s a Star Warrior?”

“His name’s Kirby. And he can do this thing where he inhales and shoots a star puff from his mouth,” Tiff said. “Maybe he’s just a baby Star Warrior.”

Someone knocked on the door. “I’ll get it!” Tuff said.

Tiff looked at Kirby. He looked up at her and said, “Tiff poyo?”

“We’re home!” a lady’s voice said.

“That’s Mom!” Tiff said. “I’ll have to explain about you.”

Just as Tiff spoke, a lady in a once-fine white dress, now tattered and yellowed, and a man with a moustache and a tight vest entered the room.

“Oh Tiff? Back so soon?” the lady said.

“Mama, I found a Star Warrior!” Tiff said. She gestured to Kirby.

“That’s nice, dear,” the lady said. Then she startled. “A Star Warrior? Oh my, are you sure?”

“I’m pretty sure!” Tiff said. She led her mother over to Kirby. “This is Kirby, Mama. Kirby, this is Lady Like, my mother.”

Kirby waved. “Poyo!”

“Tiff, dear,” Lady Like whispered. “Are you completely sure? He just seems like a baby.”

“Mama, he saved my life! I was running to the forest and forgot about the canyon,” Tiff said, “and I fell into it, and he jumped down and floated us back up!”

“Really?” Lady Like said. “In that case, you might be right.”

“What’s all this?” Tiff’s father said.

“Darling, this is Kirby. He’s a Star Warrior, and he’ll be staying with us,” Lady Like said. “Kirby, this is Sir Ebrum, my husband.”  
“Hai!” Kirby said.

“He’s another mouth to feed, even if he is a Star Warrior,” Sir Ebrum said. “Why should we keep him?”

“Kaabi star. Poyo star poyo.”  _ I want to find the Sparkling Stars and help you! _

“I think he’s saying he wants to find the Sparkling Stars,” Tiff said. The star Kirby had given her glowed faintly in her hand.

Kirby nodded.

“How could this little thing do that?” Sir Ebrum said skeptically.

“He saved my life!” Tiff repeated.

“I suppose he can stay,” Sir Ebrum said.

Kirby smiled. Tiff sat down beside him and offered him the star. “This is yours, right? Do you want it back?”

He looked at it, then shook his head. “Tiff poyo.”

“Oh well. I guess I’ll keep it,” Tiff said.

Lady Like shooed the kids out of the house, so Tiff and Tuff led Kirby around Cappy Town and showed him the sights.

“This is Chef Kawasaki’s. He’s… not the best chef, but he’s trying.” Tiff showed Kirby a small restaurant.

“His food tastes weird.” Tuff added.

“Ooh,” Kirby said. He looked longingly at the shop.

“C’mon! There’s more to see!” Tiff said.

They passed a small police station, a mechanic’s shop, and a shop, each of which Tiff helped explain to Kirby. Soon, the sun was sinking behind the horizon, and it was time for dinner.

Kirby sat at the table with Tiff and her family, watching eagerly as Lady Like served up plates with a scoop of baked beans mixed with tiny bits of sausages, a piece of bread, and a mealy apple.

“Dinner is served!” Sir Ebrum said.

Tiff and Tuff poked at their food and took small bites, while Sir Ebrum ate quickly. Lady Like was somewhere in between, eating slowly but with regular-sized bites. Kirby eyed the food, then crawled up onto the table. He took a deep breath and sucked the entire meal from his plate, then gulped it down.

Lady Like screamed. Tiff, Tuff, and Sir Ebrum gasped in surprise. “What in Popstar was that?”

Kirby looked at the shocked faces of his friends, whimpered, and fled. He tumbled out the window.

The star, safely in Tiff’s pocket, glowed. “Oh no!” Tiff said. “Kirby! We have to go find him!”

“In the dark? With monsters roaming?” Lady Like fretted.

“We’ll take a flashlight,” Tuff said.

The kids ran outside and held out the flashlight, calling for Kirby. Although the night was warm, Tiff shivered as she thought of the little Star Warrior alone in the dark. Finally she heard quiet whimpers coming from above her. Tiff and Tuff followed the sounds to the roof of their house. Kirby sat on the shingles, whimpering and staring up at the stars.

“Kirby, it’s okay,” Tiff said. “We weren’t mad.”

Kirby just looked away and whimpered again.

“Really,” Tuff said. “We were just surprised at how you eat.”

“You can come back, it’s okay,” Tiff said.

Kirby looked back at Tiff. “Poyokay.”

Tiff and Tuff climbed back down from the roof with the flashlight pointed at the ground. Kirby took one last look up at the stars, then floated down after the kids. As they finally returned home, sirens sounded. Tiff and Tuff pressed against the side of the house. Kirby looked disoriented.

“Hide!” Tiff hissed. “That sound means a monster is in Cappy Town!”

Kirby shook his head. “Poyo!”  _ I can fight it! _ He ran off to the bare patch of ground in the middle of the town.

“We’d better follow him!” Tuff said.

“Go then. You have the flashlight!” Tiff responded.

The two kids followed Kirby, brandishing the pale beam of the flashlight. Something glistened wetly in the light, and as the flashlight moved along it, the trio spotted a pair of bright green, glowing eyes.

“Monster!” Tiff squeaked.

Kirby just stood there. He stared up at the giant red octopus-like creature. As it turned to face the kids, Kirby cried out “Poyo!” and rushed at it.

The monster turned and shot a pair of smaller octopi from its tentacles that faced Kirby.

The little Star Warrior took his chance. He stepped back and scrunched up his face, then inhaled, creating a swirling vortex that pulled in the mini monsters. He held the monsters in his mouth, then spit them out at the larger monster, which made a strange noise in pain and turned its full attention to Kirby.

The monster flailed its tentacles and tried to smash Kirby beneath one, but he was too quick. Kirby dodged the flailing blows and inhaled again, collecting rocks and debris that he spit back at the monster in a star-shaped puff.

The monster roared again. By this time, most of the village had come outside to watch.

When the monster summoned its minies again, Kirby was ready. He inhaled one at a time and struck the monster with them. The monster gurgled in defeat and disintegrated with a boom that shook the night.

“Kirby, that was amazing!” Tiff said. She ran up and gave him a hug. “There’s no way you aren’t a Star Warrior with that kind of power.”

He wriggled out of her arms, poyoed happily, and did a step-hop move to an imaginary beat.

“He’s… dancing,” Tuff said. “Weird.”

“It’s so cute!” Tiff said.

When he had finished, Kirby walked up to Tiff, yawned, and hugged her.

“He must be a Star Warrior,” Sir Ebrum said. “Take him to Kabu tomorrow - you need sleep first.”

Tiff brought Kirby into her bedroom and made a nest of extra pillows and blankets for him. He fell fast asleep in a few minutes, and snored squeakily, each snore accompanied by a tiny bubble of saliva. Tiff slept in her own bed, and for the first time in a long time, she dreamed hopeful dreams.


	2. Kabu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirby, Tiff, and Tuff go to consult the sage Kabu.

The next day, Tiff and Tuff packed a small lunch and got ready to lead Kirby back to the canyon. At first, Tiff left the star on her bedside table, but when Kirby noticed, he sat down and refused to walk until she took it with her. Instead of going to the end of the canyon where Kirby had landed, they headed for the other side of the canyon, near the forest. There, the canyon had a rope bridge across it and was easy to navigate. Stone steps led to a large ledge where an ancient-looking statue, worn and weathered with a simple face carved with holes stood.

“Hello, travelers,” it said in a hollow, echoey voice.

Kirby squeaked and hid behind Tiff.

“Is that a newcomer I see?” the great statue asked.

“Yes, Kabu!” Tiff said. “Kirby the Star Warrior is here, just like you said.”

“Come here,” Kabu said. His deep voice resonated within the bodies of Kirby and his friends.

When Kirby hesitated, Kabu chuckled. “You’ll be fine, child. I don’t bite.”

Kirby walked up to Kabu and stopped a few paces away from the stone face. “Poyo po po yo?”  _ Do you know where the Sparkling Stars are? _

“I think he said--” Tiff began, but Kabu shushed her.

“I understand. You wish to help the people of Dream Land?”

Kirby nodded. “Poy-poyo!”  _ Tiff has my star. _

As if in answer to Kirby, the star Tiff held blazed up, glowing so bright it was difficult to look at.

“Ah, his token,” Kabu said. “What Kirby did when he gave you that Warpstar was a sign of trust. Only you will be able to send it to him when he’s in need of it.”

“Need it? Why would he need that?” Tiff asked.

“Surely you can tell it’s more than it seems?” Kabu said. “Come inside and I’ll show you.”

Kirby walked into the mouth of the statue. Tiff and Tuff glanced at each other, but followed anyway. Inside they found a large chamber with enough room for many people and a pedestal off to one side with a star-shaped indent.

A smaller Kabu, identical in shape to the statue they were in but much smaller, addressed the trio once they were inside.

“Tiff, put the star on the ground.”

She obeyed. Kirby walked up to it, but before he could touch it, it tripled in size, became a flat, board-like shape, and rose off the floor.

_ Hey, that looks like my starship. _ “Poyo!” Kirby hopped onto the star. He landed off balance, and the forward tilt sent the star flying forward.

“Whoa!” Tuff said.

Kirby shifted his weight, tilted and flew the star in a quick circle around the room, then landed awkwardly and tumbled off its surface. The star returned to its smaller size and Tiff picked it up.

“You see why it could be useful?” Kabu said. “Put it there, on the pedestal. It will be safe here, and you can call it for Kirby when he needs it.”

Tiff set the Warpstar down on the pedestal. It glowed dimly, pulsing like a heartbeat.

“Star poyo?” Kirby said to Kabu.

“Oh yes, the Sparkling Stars. King Dedede gave each of them to one of his… acquaintances in the different regions of Dream Land.”

“Acquaintances?” Tiff said.

“Some are monsters, some guardians, some are his own creations, but they’re each the most powerful being in their region.”

“Poyo. Poyo po poyo?”  _ Is there one in this forest? _

“Yes, Kirby. Travel deep into the Green Green Forest and you’ll find the guardian of one of the Sparkling Stars.”

“So there’s one in the forest, one at the beach, one in the mountains… What other regions are there?” Tiff asked.

“Along with the regions you listed, there is also a Sparkling Star in the haunted mansion, and in King Dedede’s castle.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Tiff said.

“Hey, where did Kirby go?” Tuff asked.

Sure enough, Kirby had left the statue and started to walk up to the forest.

“Wait, Kirby! We need to keep track of you!” Tiff said.

“Poyo.” Kirby shook his head.  _ You can’t come. _

“Oh, no. We’re coming with you,” Tuff said. “You can’t go out there alone.”

“Poyo Tiff star! Poyo!”  _ But Tiff has my star. You can help that way. _

“No, we’re coming.” Tiff insisted.

“Poyo. Poyo poy poy.”  _ No, you can’t come. Let’s have lunch. _

“Please?” Tiff begged.

“Tiff poy.”  _ You have to stay. _

“Okay,” she said, finally. “Let’s have lunch, and then you can go.”

“Poy!”

Tiff and Tuff set up the picnic beside Kabu. “Did you know Kirby wouldn’t let us come?”

“Yes, it’s too dangerous for non-Star Warriors to accompany him. But if you enter me again, I can let you watch him as he travels.”

“I hope he’ll be okay,” Tiff said. She pulled out three sandwiches with mango apricot jelly on rye bread and passed them out.

Kirby swallowed his sandwich whole, and Tiff and Tuff ate theirs. 

“If you really can find the Sparkling Stars, it’ll be great. I can’t wait to have normal food again,” Tuff said.

“Poy,” Kirby said. He glanced at the forest.

“You ready? Are you sure you don’t want us to come?” Tiff asked.

He nodded.

“Bye Kirby! Come back safe, okay?” Tiff and Tuff said.

Kirby waved, then walked into the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh - I should put this in - I'm using a mix of Japanese and American character names so be prepared for a little confusion.


	3. Green Greens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirby explores the forest of Green Greens looking for the Sparkling Stars.

It was a beautiful day. Despite the heat and the dry grass, the flowers in the forest bloomed, filling the air with a sweet, tingly smell and taste. Kirby glanced back one last time, then ran further into the forest, kicking up puffs of seeds as he went.

Soon the trees shaded him, dappling the sunlight with their broad leaves. He pushed through a few bushes, then accidentally disturbed a few sleeping Bronto Burts. The insectoid creatures flew up in a frenzy, then spotted Kirby.

He barely had enough time to squish to the ground before they rushed him and tried to knock him down.

 _Next time, I’ll look where I’m going,_ he thought. _The guardian’s deep in the forest. I’d better go further._

He walked cautiously further from the edge of the forest. Weird noises, growls, and clicks kept him on edge, and he looked quickly to either side.

Soon large logs blocked his path. He puffed up and floated over them, then panted for breath as he landed on the other side.

He could see trails of unfamiliar footprints in the ground, swift streams flowing, and creatures dozing, but there was no star to be seen. _It must be even deeper in._

As he pushed into the forest, the rays of sunlight were further apart, and the noises he heard grew louder. Trees whose knotholed trunks had been facing sideways now faced him, and more Bronto Burts rushed him, even though he’d done nothing to aggravate them.

“Poy!” he squeaked as a third group tried to knock him over. One of them brushed the top of his head.

Despite the low light, Kirby could see a group of creatures headed straight at him. The striped backs and snorting nostrils of a herd of Nruffs raced at Kirby, showing no signs of stopping.

 _They’re not going to get out of the way,_ Kirby thought. He tried to move aside. The bushes to his sides were poky, so he hopped up to a low-hanging branch and clung to it with all his might.

Then they were upon him.

Tusks, hooves, snouts, there wasn’t much difference between them as they pummeled Kirby. The Nruffs knocked him back and forth and bruised his soft body. The stampede seemed to be endless. Finally, Kirby dropped to the ground, exhausted.

He trudged forward, not sure if he was even making progress. _Did I already pass that tree?_ The undergrowth thinned and thickened, but he barely noticed the change. What he did notice was a bright, juicy tomato sitting on the ground in front of him.

“Ooh!” Kirby rushed to it, stuffed it in his mouth, and forgot his earlier pain. Only after he’d finished eating did he realize - _Food! The king must have come this way!_

Now he knew he was going deeper into the forest. The moss cushioned his feet and there were more trees and less undergrowth in this direction.

He encountered a one-eyed creature that grinned at him. 

Kirby smiled back nervously. 

Then the creature struck. It whipped a beam of energy that stung like determined hornets. He tiptoed backwards, then inhaled and puffed out the creature a safe distance away from him. _Ouch!_

More Nruffs, Bronto Burts, and one-eyed Waddle Doos attacked Kirby as he continued to push through the forest. He tried to be friendly with the Waddle Doos, but every time, they rejected him with their crackling energy beam. _So, I guess I’ll have to make sure they stay out of my way,_ Kirby thought.

He inhaled and spat out the Bronto Burts as they rushed him, which knocked them back and out of his way.

Soon he’d reached a clearing. Kirby blinked in the brighter light, unfiltered by the trees.

 _Is it afternoon already?_ He looked around. There didn’t seem to be anything coming to get him here, so he settled down next to a tree to rest.

_I’ll just take a little break._

Moments later, he was startled awake by a loud explosion. “Poyo!” he squealed. _That sounded close!_ Kirby tried to find the source of the noise.

As he walked into the center of the clearing, a tall, white-faced creature with a floppy hat carrying a bomb, jumped out at him. “Boo!”

Kirby hopped backward. “Aah!”

Dancing on its pointed toes, the creature pulled out another bomb and sized Kirby up.

Kirby prepared to inhale it, but he knew it was too big before he even opened his mouth. _What do I do?_

The creature threw its bomb just as Kirby began to inhale.

 _I have a bomb in my mouth! Yikes!_ He hopped and spat the bomb back at the creature.

The bomb exploded and knocked back the creature, but it didn’t leave. If anything, it was more aggressive.

Kirby puffed up and floated out of reach of the bombs, then dropped back down to get a breath occasionally. The bombs exploded beneath him, and the shockwaves bounced him up.

“Poyo!” he said. _Why are you trying to explode me?_

The creature only cackled.

Kirby inhaled the bombs it threw and spat them back at the creature. Each time, the creature grew more aggressive, but also weaker. It was panting and tried to attack less and less carefully.

Finally, Kirby exhaled one last bomb, and the creature howled in pain and disintegrated.

“Poyo.” _Phew, that’s over._

He walked out of the clearing and found more traces of food. More Nruffs, Waddle Doos, and Bronto Burts ambushed him. Kirby found a small, abandoned hut made from a hollow tree, but no one was inside it. Behind it slept a large, striped bear.

 _I’d better not wake it up_. Kirby inched past it carefully.

As the forest closed in again, the inhabitants that he found were not as friendly. Some were wild creatures, starving and scared, but others, like the Waddle Doos and Bronto Burts went out of their way to attack him. A few smaller creatures with bombs attacked Kirby, but he knew how to defeat them after fighting the senior creature.

He could tell he was deep in the forest now. Almost every step, he tripped over a root or hit a low bush. Soon he was scratched up and tired.

Then a faint light appeared, somewhat near, but Kirby couldn’t see its source. It faded quickly, but he scrambled towards it. Instinctively, he knew it was from a Sparkling Star. The trees here almost definitely had faces. Kirby spotted leafy eyebrows, twig noses, and knotholed eyes. But although the faces weren’t unfriendly, the whispers and shadows were.

None of the plants here were withered. Kirby knew he had to be getting closer. Flowers swung out at him to block his way, but he gently pushed past them. Eventually, he found another mossy clearing.

Tall, old trees with wooden faces circled the clearing. One of them bore bright red apples, despite the lack of fruit everywhere else.

Kirby’s stomach rumbled. “Poy-o.” _These apples look good._ He walked to the tree, noticing a hollow in the tree like a mouth. He floated up to the branches and tugged on an apple. It came free and as he tumbled back down, he noticed something glowing and sparkling in the middle of the apple tree’s branches.

_The Sparkling Star!_

He climbed into the tree and tried to reach the star, but the tree’s branches shook violently, as if in a storm wind. Kirby fell from the tree again and landed just beneath the wooden face.

Leafy eyebrows and hollow mouth frowned at him. Then the tree shook its branches again, dropping a torrent of apples and a few caterpillars.

“Poyo!” _This tree is the guardian! And it wants to squash me!_ The fact that the tree was alive didn’t faze him.

Kirby backflipped, dodged the falling apples, and inhaled a few as a snack. _I’m sure I can’t inhale a tree,_ he thought. _So how do I get that Sparkling Star?_

The tree continued to drop apples, though at a slower pace. When Kirby got too close to its branches, it puffed strong blasts of air that knocked Kirby from the sky.

 _That’s it! I can inhale the apples and spit them out at the tree, like I did with the clown creature._ He dodged and inhaled the next volley of apples, then spit them out at the tree.

Like the clown creature, the tree reacted by becoming more aggressive. It puffed more blasts of air and dropped more and more apples. Kirby dodged the air blasts - _Can’t inhale those! -_ and the apples. He collected as many apples as he could for another attack.

Then he spit them out and hit the tree. It made a sound like breaking branches and shook its top again. This time there were spiky creatures mixed in with the apples that Kirby couldn’t inhale. The spiky creatures knocked him around and scratched his light pink skin.

“Poyo-ow!” He spat out his mouthful of apples slightly off target. Only some of them hit the tree.

The tree responded with more apples, spikes, and blasts of air. Kirby inhaled the apples and spit them back at the tree, then dodged the air blasts and tried to dodge the spikes.

 _I think I know what this tree can do now,_ he thought. He inhaled another round of apples, lined up with the angry tree, and spit them out. _But when will it stop fighting? Tiff and the others need the Sparkling Star to find food!_

The tree puffed out more air blasts and knocked Kirby back. Apples, caterpillars, and spikes bombarded Kirby, but he managed to inhale a few more times and hit the tree again. He was badly scratched, bruised, and tired. _I hope I can beat this tree!_

Kirby avoided a few more attacks and retaliated with his own a few more times. Finally, the tree gave up. Its eyebrows drooped, and it sobbed a tear of sap, but more importantly, it stopped shaking its branches.

 _Poor tree,_ he thought. _You were just guarding what the King told you to._ “Poyo.” _You did a good job, but my friends need this Sparkling Star._

He ran back into the forest, found a particularly pretty flower, dug it up, and brought it back to the tree.

“Poyo star?” _Trade for the Sparkling Star?_

The tree was still crying. Kirby dug a hole near its roots, replanted the flower, and smiled at the tree. He brushed against it in a hug, though he was too small to reach around it, and smiled, trying to comfort it.

“Poyo poy,” _I’m sorry I hurt you._

He floated up to the branches, pushed through, and carefully removed the Sparkling Star. It glowed like his Warpstar, bright and glittering as a jewel.

 _If only the tree wasn’t so sad,_ Kirby thought. But the tree had cheered up a little. It looked at the flower, and shook out droplets of water onto it.

Kirby smiled and did a little happy dance.

He walked out of the forest, found his way through the underbrush, and reached a stone cliff, far above an ocean.

.oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo.

Back inside of Kabu, Tiff watched the screen showing Kirby’s location anxiously. Tuff, although interested, had gone home.

Seeing that Kirby had reached a dead end, she asked, “Kabu, does Kirby have the first Sparkling Star?”

“I believe so,” Kabu replied. “He should go to the haunted mansion next.”

“Warpstar!” Tiff said. The glowing star rose from its pedestal and launched out of Kabu’s mouth, flying to its owner.

 _You can do it, Kirby!_ Tiff thought.

.oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo.

Back at the cliff, Kirby looked over the edge. _I can float,_ he thought, _but can I float all the way down there? And if I do, can I swim across before dark?_

The sky began to fade into orange. Kirby was just about to climb down the cliff and risk swimming when the Warpstar flew to him and hovered expectantly beside him. He climbed on.

“Star!” he said, and tilted it. He flew across the ocean to the broken down, castle-like mansion up by the mountains.  _ I wonder what will be here? _


	4. Lola

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirby reaches Castle Lololo.

He landed a bit hard and knocked some rubble and dust from the balcony. The dust made him cough, and his coughs brought down even more rubble. Kirby was unharmed, so he continued inside. Immediately, Kirby noticed how dark it was. There were only a few flickering candles revealing Waddle Doos on the many stairways, and since it was growing dark outside, the candles were the only light.

Kirby walked up and avoided the beams of the Waddle Doos, then spotted a small, metal object.

“Poyo?” he whispered. The object echoed and amplified his sound. “Poyo poy! Poyo-o!” he said, experimenting with different pitches. The microphone screeched and scared away the Waddle Doos. Kirby wandered onward, ignorant of his off-key singing.

A few half-empty bottles of energy drink sat at the top of the stairs. He opened them and slurped out the candy-sweet liquid. But his snack was interrupted when a large bat swooped past. Kirby shrieked and continued up the building. Strange, mask-like creatures detached from the wall and chased him, but they halted at the exterior door.

Kirby walked out into the dusk without noticing the bomb in front of him. When he did notice it, he inhaled it and held it in his mouth.  _ This would’ve helped with the clown creature earlier. _

A few Bronto Burts flew on the rooftops, and Kirby spat out the bomb. It ignited and the shockwave knocked away the Bronto Burts in front of him. He continued to a door in the rooftops. When he entered it, he found a large space with a maze of pillars and doorways, some blocked with clay bricks. Shimmering light shone through the cracks.

_ There’s another Sparkling Star! _ Kirby inhaled, but before he could remove the clay bricks, the light disappeared and a blue creature blocked the wall behind him.

Kirby quickly found himself with a mouthful of clay and no clear path to the Sparkling Star. He walked through the hole he’d made and found a pink creature with a yellow bow, also pushing a block of clay. He spat his mouthful at her, but instead of staying to fight, she abandoned the block and flew away. His star puff demolished the block.

“Please, don’t hurt me,” she cried.

“Pooyo?”  _ You care? _

“I don’t want to fight,” she said. She flew up to him.

“Po pooyoo?”  _ Where’s the Sparkling Star? _

The blue creature joined his partner and said, “We can’t let you have the Sparkling Star.”

“Poyoo.”  _ I need it. _

“We need it too! Dedede said if we don’t guard it --”

“--he’d separate us! We’ve been together our whole life, so we couldn’t let that happen,” the pink creature finished.

“Poy poyo?”  _ Please can I have it? _

“We can’t let you have it,” the blue creature said. “Lalala?”

“Oh, all right, but I really don’t want to fight him, Lololo,” the pink creature replied.

“Po poyo po!”  _ I don’t want to fight you either. _ Kirby waved his arms.

“But you’ll take the Sparkling Star--”

“--and then Dedede will separate us!”

“Poyo.”  _ Not if Dedede isn’t bullying anymore. _

“Hey, I didn’t think of that,” Lololo said sarcastically. “Wrong. Dedede won’t stop.”

“Poyo stop Dedede.”

“Will you? Or do you just want the star?”

“Poyo.”  _ I promise. _

“Oh really. Is that worth anything?” Lalala said, somewhat interested.

“Poyo star poyo!”  _ I’m a Star Warrior! _

“A Star Warrior?” the duo said in unison. “Wow!” They flew through the maze of bricks, discussing together. Kirby waited by the door to the roof. Soon they came back carrying the second Sparkling Star.

“Here, take this --”

“--and stop Dedede!”

Kirby rested with Lalala and Lololo that night. The mansion could be surprisingly comfortable despite the lack of light, especially when he carried the Sparkling Stars with him. The next morning, he said a poyoed goodbye to Lololo and Lalala and waited outside for Tiff to call the Warpstar.

Sure enough, in a few minutes, the Warpstar hovered beside him, and he hopped on. Kirby rushed back to the ocean, where he’d spotted the islands Kabu had mentioned. He skimmed over the water as the sun rose fully, and reached the beach of one island.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to post yesterday!! Oof. But if this happens again, I'll continue to try to post as soon as I can.


	5. Float Islands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirby explores the Float Islands.

The sand was pleasantly warm to walk on, and soon the Warpstar had returned to Kabu and Tiff. Kirby wandered on the beach for a while, but was startled by an unripe coconut that fell beside him and exploded.

“Poy?” he said as he examined the tree. It looked like a perfectly normal palm tree, but the coconuts were shaped differently and burst open when they hit the ground.  _ That’s new. Wait a second… I haven’t eaten since yesterday! _

He scrambled around the beach, looking for something edible, but like the forest, there was nothing growing that was good to eat. Kirby only found shells and rocks, and an old fishing rod. He cast the rod, tried to catch something, and waited, little waves licking at his feet.

Finally, there was a tug, and Kirby pulled his catch out of the water. He inhaled to get the fish into his mouth, then swallowed it. It didn’t taste bad, but it didn’t taste good either. Pulling the string, Kirby tried to remove the fishhook from his mouth, but it was stuck. Each tug brought mild pain to the inside of his mouth. He spat it out and walked inland.

The coconut palms grew abundantly on this island. After being hit by several exploding coconuts, Kirby became used to looking up every few steps. There were a few Waddle Doos and their milder, two-eyed cousins, Waddle Dees, who still smacked Kirby if he got too close

Kirby searched the island for signs of food. Even though the grass grew well, and there was plenty of water, he couldn’t find anything growing that was edible. Remembering the fish he’d eaten, he waded into the water and splashed after any other fish he saw. The fish dove, so Kirby took a deep breath and swam after them.

Sunlight trickled down and let Kirby see the fish around him. He swam clumsily up to one, only for it to ram into him and hurt him.

“Ow!” he burbled. The air he released floated up in large bubbles.  _ I should make sure I hold my breath _ . He swam deeper and spotted an anemone creature clinging to an apple core in the sand.

Kirby tried to pull the core from the anemone’s tentacles, but the anemone spurted a pellet of sand at him.

Frustrated, he stuck his tongue out and spat at the creature. The air in his mouth bubbled out with enough force to knock the apple piece from the anemone’s tentacles.

_ Okay. I can do this if something tries to hurt me. _

He grabbed the apple and swam on, avoiding fish that tried to steal it. Unusual marks in the sand and more scraps of food led up to a large coral cave in the side of the island, so he swam there. Kirby rose to the surface and climbed into the sandy cave. 

He ate the apple as he walked deeper into the cave.  _ It might be all I find to eat here. _

The dim light made it hard to see the path before him, so Kirby stumbled on the spiky Gordo in front of him before he saw its spikes. He cried out in pain and tried to walk around it. When that failed, he inhaled in an attempt to move it out of the way, but it didn’t budge.

Kirby puffed himself up carefully, floated over the Gordo, and strained to see any more of them ahead of him. Colonies of the creatures blocked parts of the twisting coral cave, which forced Kirby to avoid them and the fish trying to flop into him.

As he traveled further into the cave, the number of fish left by the tide diminished. Gordos continued to block his way, creating a maze of spikes, and he heard strange, echoey noises.

A crude, rocky face shape, like a miniature Kabu, appeared in front of him.

“Poyo?”

It disappeared as quickly as it had come, and Kirby walked past the spot, but the stone reappeared right on top of him. Dazed, he managed to inhale it and spit it out anyways. More of the rocks appeared, bouncing around aimlessly. Kirby walked past them curiously, but was careful not to be hit by them again. He passed more Gordos and noticed the walls becoming rougher.

_ I must be all the way beneath the island now, _ he thought. In front of him leaned a large, wooden ship, wrecked right in front of the cave’s exit. A small pile of food scraps lay at the gaping hole in its side.

_ Maybe the next guardian’s in here! _ Kirby climbed into the ship, ready to defend himself, but nothing but a few disturbed hermit crabs tried to fight him there. He fended them off and walked along the slimy boards of the ship’s deck. A few boards nearly crumbled beneath his feet. Deeper in the ship and closer to the cave’s exit, a few Waddle Dees and Doos tried to keep Kirby away from a stash of cooked fish. He avoided their attempts at smacking him, but left the food for them, even though he was hungry.

“Poyo.”  _ That’s your food. _

No large enemies attacked him as he climbed through the sunken ship, but every once in a while a Waddle Dee or Doo would try to keep him from passing. Kirby would just inhale it and puff it out of his way.

More Gordos clung to the woodwork of the ship, often right next to or in front of a porthole he wanted to go through. With these obstacles and the Waddle Doos to deal with, Kirby ended up taking a twisted path through the interior of the sunken ship. Finally, rays of bright light told him he was reaching the surface again.

Passing a few more anemones and Gordos, he climbed out of the ship and swam up to the end of the prow. He stood there, looking around for what caused the ripples in the water around. Nothing under the surface looked large enough to cause the waves.

Then Kirby spotted a whale swimming. The waves weren’t coming from it, but rather from something above it that cast a thick shadow. Sea spray splashed into his mouth.

“Star poyo,”  _ Warpstar would help here. _

The sky grew cloudy, but the shadow didn’t change. As the shadow passed by again, the Warpstar flew to Kirby’s side and he hopped on. He pulled up, trying to rise high enough to find the flying thing, but the Warpstar wouldn’t rise.

Undaunted, Kirby steered the Warpstar to the whale. As it surfaced, the whale spouted and launched air, water, and Kirby on the Warpstar. Now he could glide to the flying thing.

The Warpstar was losing altitude as it headed to a low cloud. Kirby tried to steer it up, but it wouldn’t rise higher than it already was. In a few seconds, he crashed against the cloud, and the Warpstar left.

He lay on spongy, cottony ground, and was able to see the flying thing for what it was. A dirigible with a grinning shark face painted on the balloon circled in the air far above him.

_ That is the guardian. _ He stood up again and brushed himself off, then began hopping and floating across a series of small clouds that led to the machine. One more large cloud lay between Kirby and the machine, and as he walked across it, he found a large sweet potato sitting on the cloud.

_ Mmm. _ He quickly ate it up and felt its effects. Kirby puffed up, almost to his body’s limit, and floated over to the machine.

The dirigible faced Kirby, revealing two large cannons attached to its underside. It immediately fired on him and tried to knock him out of the sky. He flapped around awkwardly, nearly got hit, and exhaled a puff of air in his attempts to knock the cannonballs away. Instead of falling like he normally would, he refilled with air that tasted slightly like sweet potato.

_ Huh. The sweet potato’s making me have enough air to fly and puff without falling _ .

Now confident in his abilities, he puffed repeatedly to push away the cannonballs. But even the highly-compressed air he exhaled wasn’t strong enough to knock away the metal spheres. He dodged instead.

One of his exhales hit the airship, which rocked unsteadily.

_ Hit the ship, not the cannonballs. _ Breathing out hard, he dodged the cannonballs as much as he could. A few of them hit, and he grew so sore it hurt to breathe. He managed to hit the airship a few more times, despite being injured.

The airship shook erratically, rattled, then began to fire faster, creating deadly nets of metal in the air. Although Kirby had no trouble holding his breath, his arms were getting tired as he flapped to gain altitude. He puffed out more air, his lungs protesting with each attack.

Instead of steadily circling, the airship rose and fell and flew to either side. He had to avoid its cannonballs, avoid it, and aim correctly with each exhale. Cannonballs and compressed air traded volleys, and Kirby couldn’t always dodge the cannonballs.

The airship’s framework grew dented, and spots of its paint fell off.  _ I can do this. Just a little longer. _

He spat out another air puff and struck the airship. The metal bent even further, but his lungs felt worse - like something was squeezing and scratching them. Despite this, Kirby puffed out another time, and this time the airship smoked and fell. It spiraled, a wreck of fabric and metal, and glittering golden light shone through its holes.

The sweet potato had worn off. Kirby let out his breath and fell, trusting the clouds beneath to catch him like before. Sure enough, he landed safely on the soft, spongy surface. He stood up and walked to the Sparkling Star, which lay in the wreckage of the airship.

It shimmered and glittered as he picked it up, and the scratches and soreness faded from his body. With this Sparkling Star in hand, Kirby was excited.  _ I’m helping Tiff for sure now! _

Almost instinctively, his feet tapped and he launched into his happy dance. He’d nearly forgotten he was on a cloud when a strong wind rose up and tumbled him over the edge.

“Tiff poyo!” he yelled.  _ Help, Tiff! _

He heard the jingling drone of his Warpstar as it caught him and zoomed out from beneath the cloud. Relieved, he steered the Warpstar through the cloud bank that lay near the mountains. The sky grew colder and darker. Once he’d landed, Kirby shivered without the warmth of the Warpstar beneath him.

Bubbly, rounded clouds clumped together in the sky. Kirby found one with an air pocket that served as a small, soft cave where he could rest. The cloud felt warm and safe, and soon he was fast asleep.


	6. Bubbly Clouds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirby explores the clouds. (I posted this on a different day because I accidentally had it merged with the Float Islands chapter - oops! so I just separated them)

Sunlight streamed into the cloud cave as he woke up. He walked out to the thinner cloud layer and yawned. Rubbing his eyes, he didn’t see the edge until he’d fallen from it onto a springy, small cloud. He bounced up from the cloud, and as he did so a small fountain of thin clouds floated up behind him, almost identical to his size and shape.

“Poyo?” he said. The cloud-Kirbies scattered and disappeared.

Kirby turned back to the larger cloud and spotted another microphone and a pile of food scraps. He inhaled it, remembering how much fun he’d had with the other microphone. He kept the microphone in his mouth until he encountered a small group of Bronto Burts diving at him.

Kirby exhaled the microphone, and sang into it. The ear-piercing, wildly off-tune and off-key result scared away the Bronto Burts and knocked cloud bits loose. He finally stopped singing and walked away from the microphone. Bronto Burts and Waddle Dees attacked from above, while strange, umbrella-like creatures jumped at him and flapped their spokes.

Those were easy enough to avoid, but mixed in with the soft clouds were Gordos, and often Kirby would get a painful poke when he least expected it. Between the spiky Gordos, sneaky Waddle Dees, and small, indestructible cannons like the ones attached to the airship he’d fought, Kirby met with plenty of resistance in the fluffy clouds.

The ground was littered with food scraps here. Sometimes Kirby had enough for a small meal.

_ I must be getting close to a guardian, or maybe even the king himself. _

Among the clouds he hopped between were pillars and starry blocks. As the clouds became sparser, Kirby hopped up the columns, floating between the largest gaps. Strange creatures hopped out of the clouds, trying to block his way, but Kirby just inhaled them and launched them away.

A few Scarfies, with pleasant pig-like faces, floated in front of him, but when Kirby tried to inhale them, they morphed into one-eyed, toothy monsters. This was too much for him. He ran a few paces away, but the Scarfies pursued. Worse, he couldn’t inhale them. Finally, when he could run no longer, the Scarfies caught up to him and exploded.

Kirby landed on his back and bounced onto a lower cloud.

“Oooh, poyoo,” he whimpered.  _ I better not try that again. _

He continued through the clouds and up the series of pillars, which led to a white marble building high in the sky. More Waddle Dees and Doos drifted down with umbrellas, but only the Waddle Doos attacked him. Kirby easily floated around their energy beams.

He entered a small room in the building, empty except for a large eyeball with three white spheres orbiting it. When it spotted Kirby, the creature rushed him, spheres whirling.

Surprised, Kirby couldn’t dodge the attack in time, so he felt the strange, damp surface of the eyeball smack him. It retreated, then threw metal spheres Kirby couldn’t inhale.

This time when the creature rushed Kirby, he jumped over it. The eyeball rolled and summoned a Waddle Doo.

_ Finally, something I can inhale! _ Kirby inhaled the Waddle Doo and spit it out at the eyeball.

The eyeball creature blinked and rolled its eye, then tried to rush Kirby again.

He ducked out of the way and avoided another round of metal spheres, then inhaled the Waddle Doo the creature summoned and hit it again. Kirby was too slow and missed the creature as it tried to ram him, so he had to wait for another Waddle Doo to inhale as he dodged the ramming attacks.

This time when the Waddle Doo appeared, Kirby inhaled it and scored a direct hit on the creature. The eyeball rolled crazily and flew off.

_ Hm, it didn’t disintegrate like the others.  _ Kirby continued through the mansion and found a plate of curry and rice that was so spicy it made him breathe spurts of flame. Luckily, this made it easy for him to break through a passageway blocked with starry rubble, where he found an energy drink that relieved his burning tongue.

He floated through another large room, which although ruined, showed signs of recent use. Kirby found more food scraps leading up a tall stairway and a small maze of clouds. He climbed them and floated through and up a series of columns. This led to a large room with many holes in the ceiling where stars twinkled through.

Resting in the middle of the room was the same eyeball creature, looking no worse for wear. Yet again it prepared to attack Kirby as soon as it spotted him. This time, it spun its spheres, gathered a wooly cloud covering, and burst out with spikes.

“Poy!” Kirby cried out in surprise.

The monster turned and palpated like a heart. Instead of attacking with metal spheres like before, it produced beams of electricity like a Waddle Doo’s that whipped above and below it.

Kirby barely managed to dodge in time to avoid the crackling energy. The creature swooped and forced Kirby into the air. He floated and got out of the way, but missed the first Waddle Doo.

He was unpleasantly surprised by its beam, but managed to inhale it and spit it at the eyeball.

The monster thrashed and unleashed another beam. Kirby got out of the way, but there was no way he could retaliate until the monster dropped another Waddle Doo.

_ What I wouldn’t give to be able to make a beam like that. _ Kirby jumped out of the way of the monster’s dive attack, then avoided another beam. Finally, he could inhale another Waddle Doo and attack the monster.

The monster’s movements became more erratic. It swooped and dropped Waddle Doos without warning, then charged and created beams. Kirby struggled to avoid being hit, then inhaled and spat Waddle Doos when he could.

As the monster became even more enraged, Kirby barely managed to avoid its attacks. He spit one more star at its eyeball core. When it hit, the monster disintegrated, and dropped a single Sparkling Star.

Kirby rushed to pick it up. The glittering star merged with the others and disappeared for later. He yawned, suddenly tired. As he danced, the points of light above him prodded and pushed him over. Kirby lay down in a pile of cloud, sleeping almost as soon as he hit the pillowy surface.

.oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo.

Tiff yawned. It was hard watching Kirby for so long, but she’d seen it all, and she knew he’d found all but one of the Sparkling Stars.

“Good job, Kirby,” she whispered.

She sank to the ground and fell asleep as well.

.oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo.


	7. Halls of the Castle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirby enters Castle Dedede, and gets more than he expected.

When he woke up, Kirby found the Warpstar jingling in front of him.

_ There’s only one Sparkling Star left, and it’s with the King. _ He hopped up onto the Warpstar, directing it to the mountain peak. As he broke through the cloud cover, he saw a large, orange-tiled castle with tan walls and a trail of food scraps leading into it, clearly visible from the air.  _ That’s gotta be it! _

He flew the Warpstar down, hopped off it, and walked in the door. A long, dark hallway of stone faced him.

Kirby gulped.

Walking in, he found no opposition, and the few Waddle Dees that entered the hall quickly left it through another door. He continued on. The hall was lit occasionally, but it grew colder the further he went.

Before he could look around for a trail to follow, the hall flooded with mist.

Kirby blinked and saw trees and plants surrounding him. A drowsy bear sat next to a door.

_ I’m… back in the woods? _

With a definite sense of deja vu, Kirby entered the door, pushed his way through some forest, and entered a clearing with the same apple tree guardian he’d fought before.

“No, poyo!” he said.  _ I don’t want to fight again! _

But as the tree began dropping apples and puffing blasts of air, Kirby knew he had no choice. He inhaled apples and spat them at the tree, then tried to avoid being hit himself. The tree grew more aggressive, dropped spikes and apples, but Kirby still fought.

When the tree was finally subdued, Kirby saw that the flower he’d given it wasn’t there.  _ So is this just a dream? _

He was back inside the castle, so he ran forward.

Again the room grew cold. Again mist flooded it. Again, Kirby found himself in a different place. He was back in the ruined mansion, with a mask creature leering at him. He beat it back, then walked up the stairs. Inside the upper room he found Lololo and Lalala again, but this time, instead of pleading with Kirby, they pushed blocks across the room at full speed.

Kirby hopped out of the way, but the moment he’d avoided one, another would come rushing through. He inhaled a block from in front of Lololo and used it to knock Lalala away, but she squealed with pain and continued to push the blocks. Both he and the duo were forced to fight.

_ In case this isn’t a dream, I don’t want to hurt them _ . He tried to attack as lightly as possible.

The moment both Lololo and Lalala dropped from exhaustion, Kirby blinked and was returned to the hall.

He continued onward.

_ I don’t want to fight. I don’t want to fight. I don’t want to fight. I don’t want to fight,  _ he panicked, as the mist rose again.

Kirby was back on the islands. He walked through part of the old ship again, then found himself up in the clouds. Strangely, another sweet potato waited for him at the edge of the cloud. Kirby gulped it down, barely tasting the starchy, sweet flavor.

Floating off the edge, ready to spit air, he saw the flying airship circling. It rushed him with a torrent of cannonballs, which he tried to dodge, but some pelted him.

Kirby retaliated. He forced out as many air puffs as he could manage, and avoided the cannonballs. The airship attacked and circled constantly. As he puffed again, the airship crashed, and Kirby stood in the hallway, the explosion still ringing in his ears.

_Why do I have to fight?_ he wondered. _Why couldn’t I just bring Tiff the Sparkling Stars I do have?_ _I know, I know. Because the King’s still being mean._

Padding forward reluctantly, Kirby let the mist swallow him again. The clouds were larger this time, and the marble pillars showed him that he was back near the eyeball monster’s lair. He hurried past the broken pillars, nimbly dodging the exploding, pig-like Scarfies, and entered the ruined room.

The eyeball monster attacked immediately. Kirby flipped backward to avoid the beams of energy, desperately buying time until the monster dropped a Waddle Doo. Somewhat distracted, since the eyeball monster was rushing at him, Kirby took a hit from the Waddle Doo’s beam. He cried out.

“Poyoo!”  _ That hurt! _

Though he was tired, sore, and heartsick, Kirby fought on, and eventually defeated the creature.

He was no longer surprised when he found himself in the castle. Kirby walked along dejectedly.

_ Wait - the mist isn’t reappearing! _

The hall grew lighter, and Kirby entered a large room with opulent red wall hangings and carpets. At the back of the room, a large, roughly penguin-shaped being in red robes and a crown was whispering to a lavender snail. The same symbol that was on the tapestries was on the penguin being’s back.

“What??” the penguin said, spying Kirby. “You let someone get all the way here?”

“I.. er… I didn’t have much of a choice, King Dedede. He beat all the monsters I could send out,” the snail whimpered.

“I’m gonna fire you,” the King shouted as he pulled out a gigantic, barrel-shaped hammer. “After I beat this  _ pink ball _ .”

The ground beneath Kirby rumbled, and a portion of the floor opened and became a wrestling ring. King Dedede jumped in eagerly.

Kirby hopped in, looked up hopefully, and said, “Poyo, star?”

The king laughed heartily. “Me, give something  _ so _ important to a commoner? No way!” He raised his hammer menacingly.

.oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo.

“Why did I think he even had a chance?” Tiff cried, seeing Dedede lean over Kirby. She yelled, “Kabu, Warpstar!”

As soon as the star glowed, Tiff grabbed onto it. It bore her weight, shot off to Kirby, and brought her along.

.oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo. .oOo.


	8. Vs. Dedede

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kirby confronts Dedede. (Final chapter!!)

Kirby rolled over at the last second. The King’s hammer landed inches away from him and splintered the floor. As Kirby toddled away, Dedede raised his hammer and chased him. Kirby barely avoided another hit from the hammer. Noticing the stone shards knocked off the floor by the King’s hammer, Kirby inhaled them and spit them at Dedede.

“Whaat?” The King cried out as a star made of myriad bits of stone hit him. Enraged, Dedede slid across the floor and lunged to grab hold of Kirby. When he managed it, Kirby wriggled, but couldn’t break free of Dedede’s grip. Dedede threw Kirby across the ring, where he lay dazed.

Tiff rode in on the Warpstar, which hovered above Kirby. “Are you okay?”

“Po.. yo..”  _ That hurt… _

She turned her attention to Dedede. “How could you attack him like that? He’s just a little kid!”

“A kid who found four Sparkling Stars,” Dedede countered. “And he had the nerve to ask me for the last one.”

“There’s no food, Dedede!” Tiff said. “Without the Sparkling Stars, nothing is growing, and you took everything else. Pretty soon you won’t have a kingdom!” She hopped into the stands.

Kirby attempted to get onto the Warpstar, but Dedede seized his chance and jumped. He knocked Kirby off balance and sent him tumbling to the ground. The Warpstar took off like a frightened bird.

Kirby stood up and hopped from side to side as he tried to avoid Dedede’s hammer.

“No fair!” Tiff shouted. “He doesn’t have a hammer!”

Once Dedede’s blows had created enough rubble, Kirby inhaled it and spat it at Dedede. The king gulped.

“Star, poyo?” Kirby repeated.

“I’m not givin’ some pink punk my Sparkling Star!” Dedede growled.

Dedede jumped high into the air and attempted to tackle Kirby, but Kirby took a few steps away and inhaled as Dedede landed, catching some shards of stone in his mouth.

Waddling out of the way of Dedede’s next lunge proved difficult for Kirby. He spat out the stone at Dedede, who yelped in pain.

“Go, Kirby!” Tiff cheered.

“Dedede is best!” yelled the snail.

Dedede slammed his hammer into the ground, then managed to hit Kirby with it. Although he was so squishy no permanent damage was done, Kirby moaned quietly. He slowly got to his feet, puffed up, and floated over the arena.

Seeing this, Dedede launched into the air again and attempted to bring Kirby down. Kirby dodged the attack, landed, and inhaled more debris. As Dedede ran at him, Kirby spit out the stones.

Panting, Dedede retreated a few steps, then pulled out his hammer. He raised it and charged.

Kirby slid out of the way and inhaled extra stone that the hammer’s blow had dislodged. As Dedede reached for Kirby to throw him again, Kirby spat out his mouthful of rocks. Dedede flinched and Kirby was easily able to dodge his next attack.

Dedede jumped and hit the ground next to Kirby again. Kirby inhaled more debris and spat it out at Dedede, who grabbed Kirby and threw him the length of the arena again.

Kirby got up and avoided Dedede’s lunge. He inhaled and spit out the rocks at Dedede.

The rocks hammered Dedede like an uppercut, launching him up and out of the castle roof. Where he had stood, one last Sparkling Star appeared.

Kirby stared at it.  _ That’s the last Sparkling Star. I did it! I really did it! _ “Poyoo!!” he said, then jumped into another dance. Tiff clapped along.

“Grab it, Kirby! I’ll call your Warpstar and we can go home,” she said.

Kirby walked up to the Sparkling Star and touched it carefully. As he did so, the other stars appeared and swirled around him, bright as the sun.  _ Let’s go home, _ he thought.

The light was gone in an instant. It disappeared into Kirby’s body like a sponge soaking up water. He felt a fizzy sensation inside of him. Energy rushed into his stubby arms, and he felt an urge to float up and out of the castle. It was almost as if the room was shrinking. He rocketed out of the castle, propelled by the Sparkling Stars.

Kirby gazed out over Dream Land. From up here, he could see everything: the fields and forests, the islands, the mountains, even Lololo and Lalala’s ruined castle.

The rush intensified. Kirby puffed up to his limit - and beyond. He grew larger and larger through the Sparkling Stars’ power, eventually becoming larger than the castle. Ropes appeared and connected the castle to his feet.

_ Home, _ he thought.  _ Let’s put this castle back where it belongs. _

He drifted over the plains, floating until he had positioned the castle directly over the patch of dirt. The Sparkling Stars left his body, circled him tightly, as if in a hug, then hovered beneath the castle and set it down gently.

Kirby shrank to his normal size and fell into the castle. Tiff saw him coming and shouted, “Warpstar, catch him!”

The star appeared just in time.

King Dedede, who had been clinging to one of the castle turrets, along with the lavender snail, Tiff, Kirby, and everyone else, stood outside, watching as the Sparkling Stars shot out over Dream Land, returning to their rightful places. Cool breezes swept away the oppressive heat, and the wilted plants perked up to their normal green.

“Come on, everyone!” Tuff yelled. “The food’s inside!”

Before Dedede could stop them, the residents of Cappy Town ran into the castle and grabbed back their stolen food. Kirby and Tiff watched happily as everything began to become normal again. They ran inside. Lady Like and Sir Ebrum started to serve out food from the stockpiles in the royal dining room. All the villagers, including Tiff and Tuff, lined up to receive their meal.

“Well, you were right,” Tuff said.

“About what?” Tiff asked.

“Him being a Star Warrior.”

“Oh yeah. I wonder what he’ll do next.”

Tiff noticed bright points of light in Kirby’s deep blue eyes, sparkling like a galaxy.

“Did he have stars in his eyes before?”

“No..” Tiff said. “Maybe the Sparkling Stars gave them to him.”

“Huh. I wonder what else they did, then.”

Kirby tugged at Tiff’s sleeve.

“Food, poyo?” Kirby asked.

Tiff laughed. “Yes, Kirby. Let’s go eat!”

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it! Please leave a comment and a kudo if you did!! :) :) :)


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